TRENTON
Attorney General Anne Milgram and Criminal
Justice Director Deborah L. Gramiccioni announced
that a Passaic County man pleaded guilty today
to charges that he fraudulently used his father’s
insurance plan to obtain prescription pain
medications.

According to Acting Insurance
Fraud Prosecutor Riza Dagli, David Van Dunk,
Jr., 35, of Hewitt, pleaded guilty before
Superior Court Judge Nestor F. Guzman in Passaic
County to third-degree theft by deception.
The charges were contained in an Oct. 7, 2008
Passaic County grand jury indictment.

Judge Guzman scheduled sentencing
for Aug. 31. The state will recommend that
Van Dunk be sentenced to three years of probation
conditioned on him either serving 364 days
in the county jail or successfully completing
a drug treatment program of at least 18 months.

In pleading guilty, Van Dunk
admitted that between Jan. 24 and Nov. 8,
2006, he falsely used his father’s prescription
plan to wrongfully obtain prescription medications,
including oxycodone, Percocet, morphine sulfate,
and Endocet. Van Dunk claimed that the medications
were for his father when, in fact, they were
for himself. As a result of the fraud, Connecticut
General Life Insurance Company paid various
pharmacies a total of $12,140 for the prescription
medications.

Detective Abraham Aquino and Deputy Attorney
General Cheryl A. Maccaroni were assigned
to the investigation. Maccaroni represented
the Office of Insurance Fraud Prosecutor at
the guilty plea hearing.